I went this past weekend to the Bulgarian restaurant “Bulgara” in New York City. It is by no means the best Bulgarian place I’ve seen abroad.
The place is extremly clean, tidy, the tables are covered with Bulgarian national-made cloths. It’s easy to find it, and cabs from Manhattan to this place would cost between $ 15 – $ 20, depending where you board.
The food – delicious! We tried “meshana skara” (steak, kebabche, kufte, shish), the famous shopska salad, leshta chorba, and we were given complimentary for desert – baklava and tolumbichka, made by Natalia, who is a very gifted and skilled chef.
One of the owners – Egor, was giving that Sunday free Bulgarian monthly newspaper – edited and printed in Las Vegas. He has also put a pile of calendars for 2006 with picture of a soccer team. When I entered, I thought it’s the CSKA – Sofia team. Nope! It was the Bulgarian New York Soccer team!
So, going back to the food and services – extremly good. I will go again, I am sure. And will bring other people, too. Price was relatively low for New York City.
And yes, the salads there are the normal way, that is without all the leaves and grass they usually make them in New York.
P.S. from May 2006: I went there on several other ocasions. Still a great place. Met Egor Stoyanov – one of the owners. They will be putting tables on the sidewalk in the summer. As it’s also close to P.S. 1 (PS 1, PS one, the Contemporary Art Center in Queens), it will be a nice place to visit, if you want to have some decent food during the weekend walk at the Art Center.
Very nice layout of the place. waitress very professionnal. Price decent. Shopska, ingredients not all super fresh and sierene too salty. Tarator just what I was looking for. Baklava excellent. wine, Mavrud, a bit to warm. Good selection of wine, beers. A place I would go back to & recommend